


From The Ashes.

by bluerorjhan, ExplicitContent



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, M/M, More tags later, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-29
Updated: 2018-07-29
Packaged: 2019-05-30 17:29:57
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15101573
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluerorjhan/pseuds/bluerorjhan, https://archiveofourown.org/users/ExplicitContent/pseuds/ExplicitContent
Summary: Druxri Acaleia, born of the Empire. But now the Empire is gone and nothing remains. Until the First Order rises.





	1. Nothing Remains.

**Author's Note:**

> So this is a complete rework of my original fic 'Noreti'. I basically stopped liking where the story was going and wanted to rejig the whole thing! Any feedback is appreciated!

Dinner was the same as it always was. Rations. Cold, dry rations. Things hadn’t been the same since the Empire fell. The economy crumbled, officers with families to feed, forced to live off Stormtrooper deployment rations just to survive. The parents of the families understood the devastation the Empire falling had caused, but not the children. The children carried on the way they always had, playing war in the streets of Dromund Kaas by their homes, chasing each other with sticks pretending to be the almighty Darth Vader they had been raised to idolize and follow without fault. But with the Empire gone, there was no more Vader, no more Emperor. There was nothing.

 

But the parents of Druxri Acaleia couldn’t reveal this truth to her. The kids she played with already tried to convince her of the Sith’s death. But she remained firm in her beliefs that the Sith would prevail. That it would be some war ploy to get the Rebel Alliance confident in their thoughts of the Empire’s fall. She didn’t believe that the Emperor nor his apprentice were on the Death Star at the time of the explosion. And her parents didn’t dare shake her confidence in them. 

 

Druxri sat at the dinner table, pushing her rations around with a fork. Pieces of dry meat crumbling away from the main slab. The more she looked at it, the more unappealing it became. 

 

“Eat up dear. I’m afraid it’s all we have.” Her mother looked at her with sad eyes. She wanted to explain to her daughter just how bad their situation was, but she was only 4 years old. Her mother decided long ago that no matter how life turned out, she would try her hardest to make sure Druxri had the best life possible. But now, with the Empire gone, that seemed harder than ever. Both of Druxri’s parents were Fleet Admirals. Aliani Acaleia, Druxri’s mother, commanded the  _ Tormentor  _ whereas Rohmal Athcurr, Druxri’s father, commanded the  _ Engager _ . They both knew it would be a dangerous job, but now with the Empire gone, there was no one there to protect them from attack. At least when you’re thousands of miles above a planet’s orbit, you knew if you were vulnerable. 

 

Aliani was a very beautiful woman; soft brown eyes with harsh black eyebrows that framed her face. Long black hair tied into a bun at the back of her head. She carried pride and importance with every step, her voice soft like velvet. Rohmal was a very broad and stocky man, not at all like Aliani, who looked as though she could break if the wind blew the wrong way. He had short black hair with blue eyes and very high cheekbones. During his time training, he was always told he looked like a younger Tarkin, only more muscular. He was a very intimidating man. Druxri however, with her wide brown eyes, long black hair and a smile that could make even the cruelest of men smile back, was not intimidating at all. She took after her mother.

  
  


“Your mother’s right, sweetheart. We can’t let any go to waste. Otherwise, you won’t grow big and strong like your dad, now will you?” Her father took a more calm face in comparison to Druxri’s mother, she was never very good at hiding her worry. 

 

Druxri didn’t respond, only looking away from her father and beginning to eat the rations. They tasted as though they had been sat in the binary suns of Tatooine for a year, but she knew her parents were right. She had to eat. 

 

They began to exchange conversation, mainly Druxri talking about how her friends didn’t believe in the Empire anymore and how it made her angry. Her parents told her that the other kids were being silly and that everything was fine while exchanging looks at each other, knowing that she would find out sooner or later. 

 

Before Druxri even knew it, it was her bedtime. She was falling asleep while eating her food, yawning as small pieces of dried meat fell from her fork. Her father rose from the table to carry her to bed when screaming from across the street could be heard. Her parents looked at each other, Aliani’s face with worry and Rohmal with shock. Aliani rose to the window slowly to see what was going on. 

 

Pulling back the curtain, she saw what any Dromundian had come to dread; friends and allies being dragged out of their homes and executed, children screaming. Whoever was doing this had no mercy. But why kill all of these people? Aliani was perplexed until one of the executioners turned. A Rebel Alliance patch. They must’ve come to eliminate any Imperial threat. But the Rebels wouldn’t be ordered to do such a thing, these people must be doing it of their own accord. 

 

“They’re here. Hide her!” Aliani turned and Rohmal knew exactly what she meant. He quickly moved over to Druxri, cradling her and hiding her under the table and before they knew it, there was banging at the door. 

 

“Open up!” A muffled voice shouted, the force of the knocking causing wood to chip off the door. The intensity of the pounding growing louder by the second. Druxri’s father looked at her mother and saw she had a pistol at the ready. 

 

“Mummy and Daddy love you very much, you know that right? My darling girl, whatever you do, don’t make a sound. You promise me?” The further his sentence went on, the more frantic he became, filled with the worry of never seeing his child again. Druxri could only nod, her mind filled with confusion. With a kiss on her forehead, her father dropped the tablecloth over the edge of the table, leaving only a small gap for her to see through. 

 

The noise of the door crashing open filled the silent house. She could hear her parents begging for their lives, their pleas only met with the sound of blaster fire. A dull thud followed by the face of her father, cold and vacant eyes seeing straight through her. She covered her mouth to stop the startled cries escaping her. Hot tears began to spill from her eyes out of sheer terror, trying her hardest not to make a sound. She heard another thud and knew it was her mother joining him. She couldn't hold in the tears any longer, they began to run faster. The footsteps of the strange men grew closer towards her, stopping just next to the table. 

"Should we check the rest of the house? These Imperial scum could be hiding fugitives." The Rebel man leaned down towards the tablecloth, slowly reaching for the hem. He began to lift it until his counterpart startled him.

"I hear something, over here! Shit!" The other Rebel man sprinted out of the house, followed closely by the other. Druxri waited and waited, listening out for any further intruders. But none came. Judging it safe, she crawled out from underneath the table clambering over her father's corpse. She couldn't believe they were dead, they couldn't be.

 

Grasping at her father’s clothes, she began to shake him in desperate attempts to wake him. "Dad! You have to wake up! Dad!" Her sobs became louder and uncontrollable. Looking over her father’s body, she saw her mothers. Just like her dad, her mother's eyes were cold, all signs of life gone. Just a few moments ago, she had a family. She had a home. And now she was just like the Empire. Nothing remained.


	2. The maggot and the worm.

At first, it was dark, the only light pouring into the cold room was the faint strip coming from underneath the door. It had been ten years, ten years since Druxri’s parents were slaughtered in front of her. Even though it had been a decade, the memories still haunted her causing heartache in the back of her mind. Her surroundings didn’t help either. The masters of the Academy ensured this. The rooms acolytes were placed in were dark and dingy. Cracks in the stone walls formed in every corner, showing the Academy’s true age. They were supplied with only a thin mattress on a metal slab attached to the wall by chains; no toilet, no sink, no light source. A room fit for a prison. 

 

Sometimes the darkness was comforting, it helped Druxri meditate and absorb her emotions making her stronger. Other times, it reminded her of the time she was a little girl hiding under the table watching her parents slip away. She missed her parents; the way her mother used to brush her hair every night before going to bed, how her father would tell her to keep her chin up and remember what family she belonged to. 

 

As she opened her eyes her surroundings were blurry, the remnants of sleep still masking her vision. She reached up with one of her hands and rubbed away the sleep and dried tears from the night's dream. She hated how weak crying made her feel, she was supposed to be strong. A future Sith Lord. But for now, all she was, was a scared little girl lost in the galaxy. 

 

She had traded her long black hair for a more shorter style now hanging at the top of her shoulders and blood red. When being admitted to the Academy, the masters wanted the acolytes to change their appearances to begin their new life. At the age of 10, they were supposed to forget their families, loved ones and old friends for their new meaning. The other acolytes had done this, making themselves unrecognizable, but even still Druxri kept part of her old life and left her fringe black to honor her parents. She had even gained a tattoo, it covered her right forearm. She had chosen to get a geometric style of lines and crosses, she never understood why she chose that pattern, it just always stood out to her. 

 

Druxri sat up from the bed and began to tie her hair up when she heard a loud knock at her door. 

 

“Maggot! Training in 10 minutes!” She could hear the voice of her master on the other side. Every time he called her maggot, her anger would spike. She didn’t like being disrespected. She shouted back saying that she was awake and proceeded to get ready. The uniform they had to wear was terribly itchy and uncomfortable. A grey long-sleeved shirt which Druxri was adamant that it was made out of wood shavings, with matching grey trousers. The only comfortable part of her outfit was her shoes. Solid black training boots. They had some cushion in the soles making it easier for the acolytes to be standing longer. 

 

“How considerate…” Druxri mumbled to herself. She slipped the shoes on and opened the door. The sudden light from the outside flooded her eyes, blinding her and causing her to blink rapidly for them to adjust. Looking around, it seemed she wasn’t the only one having trouble with their eyes and the blinding light. Other acolytes were leaving their rooms, rubbing their eyes and trudging along to the lesson. 

 

The size of the Academy was vast, accounting for hundreds of students and masters. Whoever built the Academy preferred to keep it’s appearance daunting yet habitable. The same person obviously didn’t design the acolyte’s rooms. The floors were made of black marble, polished to perfection. Even though the Empire was no more, the masters and officers that remained seemed to enjoy living in ignorant bliss, decorating the bases and Academies in the fallen Empire’s colours and donning their sigil. Even though the Dromund Kaas Academy was currently following the old Sith ways, Druxri had heard rumors of a new organization being formed called the First Order. No-one really knew where they came from or who was the head of power there. All Druxri did know, was that to her the First Order was her ticket out of here. 

 

After walking through the dimly lit halls of the Academy for 15 minutes, following behind the mass group of tired fellow Acolytes, she finally made it to class. The master too his usual stance in front of his desk in his way-too-big-for-one-person office, and waited for the class to fill in. 

 

Even after being here for 10 years, Druxri still didn’t know anyone. They were not permitted to speak to one another unless granted permission from the masters, they didn’t even know each other's names. The only name she did know was that of Donnik Hinlif. The perfect master's pet. The master gave him all the easiest tasks and assignments in the hopes he would be the one to become the apprentice. The way the Academy worked was each master took on a group of Acolytes and eventually they would get picked off one by one until only two remained. Those two would then fight to the death and the winner would become the master's apprentice. No wonder Donnik got the easiest assignments, maker forbids anyone hurts the master's precious puppet. 

 

Donnik was incredibly tall and stocky but had the personality of a Sarlacc Pit. A dark red circular tattoo covered his left eye, his right being covered by his black hair fringe. He treated everyone with disrespect because he knew he was a good acolyte. And Druxri couldn’t wait for the day to take him down. 

 

“Welcome acolytes. Today will be a long and grueling day for you, so you better pray you got enough sleep after yesterday’s trials. You will go to the Sith archives and learn about the Dark Council. I expect you to be able to name all of the Dark Lords and their legacies on the council by nightfall. Do not fail me.’ Druxri expected this but thankfully she had started to learn about them as a child when her parents found out she was force sensitive. She didn’t know much about them, but enough to get a slight head start. ‘And Donnik, you shall bring me the books I request throughout the day.” Druxri was ready to leave the room when suddenly a little voice spoke up. 

 

“Um- Master? Isn’t that unfair on the rest of us? Donnik always gets the easiest assignments.” The crowd of acolytes parted to reveal a small boy with short black hair. He didn’t look like he belonged here at all. Too weak, too small and definitely too shy. The master stopped walking away from the group and turned, anger showing in his eyes. 

 

“Excuse me, acolyte? Are you questioning my methods, worm?” He began to walk closer to the small boy, his hand reaching for his saber. Druxri knew this wasn’t right but it wasn’t her place to say anything. It was obvious that the boy didn’t belong here, and it was also obvious that he shouldn't have questioned the master. But he didn’t deserve to die, did he? 

 

The master kept getting closer to the boy, the crowd of acolytes separated further, making room for the murder they were sure was about to happen. Druxri had to do something, she just had to. Druxri stepped in front of the boy with her arms out protecting him. This was probably a big mistake.

 

“So… The maggot protects the worm.” The master had a smile on his face but stopped reaching for his saber. Druxri let out a sigh of relief. At least today wasn’t the day she met her end. 

 

“Master, forgive me. But surely executing the boy will create an unnecessary mess when you can just give him a harder task to do as punishment. Just don’t kill him. At least, not yet.” She put her arms back to her side as the boy whispered ‘thank you’ behind her but she didn’t respond. 

 

“After being accepted into our Academy, you would assume most of the petulant rodents would learn the consequences of insubordination. And for your insubordination, you and the worm shall venture into the native forests and bring me back a Gundark’s claw. If you fail, I don’t expect you to return.” The master turned and walked towards his desk and without turning again, dismissed the acolytes.

 

Heading out of the temple, the conversation remained non-existent between Druxri and the boy. She knew standing up for him would land her in trouble, but not to be hunting Gundarks. The forests weren’t far as the Academy had shuttles available. Druxri was fine with using the shuttles as usually she was alone but this time she wasn’t. The air in the shuttle was thick with anxiety and awkwardness. Knowing you were not permitted to speak to other acolytes made Druxri keep her mouth shut. But surely her master wouldn’t find out considering she was outside of the Academy. She wasn’t the one to break the ice though.

 

“Thank you for what you did back there. You didn’t have to do that though.” The boy looked over to Druxri and she could tell he was genuinely grateful for what she had done.

 

“I know I didn’t have to. But you shouldn’t have disrespected the master like that. He will just kill you when you speak out of line. And next time I won’t be there to step in.” She looked away from the boy and knew she didn’t have to be so harsh but it was for his own good. He won’t survive in the Academy but thinking he can talk to the masters that way. She did him a favour, but she didn’t know whether she would do it again. 

 

“My name’s Druxri, what’s yours worm?” She looked over to the boy and stuck her hand out for the boy to shake. He looked at her a small moment wondering whether he should reciprocate.

 

“I’m Aldux, nice to meet you, Dru.” He smiled at her sweetly.

 

“Dru?” 

 

“Yeah, Dru! It suits you.” After saying that, Aldux turned away from Druxri and gazed out of the shuttle’s window. They were approaching the forest. Druxri thought on what Aldux had called her. She never had a nickname before, but it made her smile. Perhaps a friend was what she needed.

  
  


They touched down in the forest, the sound of their training shoes making the dried leaves crunch under their weight. The air smelled fresh and clear compared to the stuffy air of the Academy. It was relaxing. Druxri closed her eyes and took in a deep breath of the air before starting to walk into the forest, Aldux close behind her.

 

“How are we supposed to take down a Gundark with training swords? We don’t even have actual lightsabers yet?” Aldux had a point. The weapons were for taking down training droids, not Gundarks. Perhaps that’s why the master was so self-assured they wouldn’t return.

 

“We’re not, that’s the point. But we have the force, don’t we?” She smirked at him. She was confident in her ability to use the force, she had been using it probably a lot longer than the other acolytes had. And if she’d lasted this long, she must’ve been doing something right. As they ventured deeper into the forest, they could hear the deep growls of the Gundarks. 

 

“You had any training with that sword?” Druxri asked Aldux as she crouched low to the ground. Gundarks were vicious creatures, their crimson skin was littered with small bones and broken horns, the stumps being worn down from years of hunting. But the same couldn’t be said for their claws. Sharp, long and black talons erupted from their nail beds, ready for use at a seconds notice. Gundarks could rip your arms from your sockets like a Wookie without any hesitation, so this was going to be hard. No wonder the master chose Gundarks, he wasn’t expecting them to return.

 

“I’ve had s-some but not much, Dru.” Aldux was nervous, his voice shaking as anxiety crawled into his veins. Druxri needed a plan, she couldn’t just go sprinting in and hope for the best. She sat and thought until an idea popped into her head.

 

“Okay, you’re not gonna like this but I have a plan. I need you to go in a create a distraction.” She looked over at Aldux to see his eyes wide, staring at her in shock.

“T-They’ll kill me in a split second! I don’t stand a chance!” He began to back away, looking as though he was about to abandon their tasks. 

 

“Aldux, let me finish. I need you to distract that one,’ She pointed to a Gundark slightly smaller than the others, it was probably younger than the others but it was separated from the main herd. ‘Distract that small one, I’ll force-choke it and cut off its claw then we run. Sound like a plan?” She looked over at him again to see his skin completely drained. But his eyes told a different story. He looked ready or even determined to do this. 

 

“How do you want me to distract him?” He began moving slightly closer to where he needed to be. 

 

“Pick up sticks or rocks- whatever you can find, and throw them at the Gundark. That should make him come to investigate, but stay close to the ground or he’ll charge at you.” Aldux began crawling lower to the ground, it seemed that his smaller body came in handy and he blended in well with the tall grass. Even Druxri lost track of him for a second until she saw small rocks being thrown towards the Gundark. It turned to face the direction of Aldux but couldn't see him. It began skulking towards Aldux very cautiously, it’s growling ceasing. Instead, it began sniffing at it got closer to Aldux, Druxri would have to act fast if she was going to stop it.

 

It was a couple of meters away from Aldux and Druxri saw this as her chance, raising her hand she began to choke the Gundark and it let out a loud roar. She didn’t expect it to make such an alerting sound and Druxri became worried. She crawled over towards the Gundark, still choking it but increased the amount of pressure she was applying to its throat. She didn’t realise just how much pressure she was applying though until a large crack filled the quiet of the forest. She had snapped its neck. Aldux backed away from the Gundark as it came crashing to the ground with a large thud and the remaining herd of Gundarks became aware that one of its own had been killed. 

 

It was now or never, Druxri sprinted over to the fallen Gundark and took out her training sword. This would be hard to cut through but she didn’t fancy becoming a Gundarks dinner. She began to start slicing at its claw almost halfway through. 

 

“Dru now would be a good time!” Aldux was backing away and the herd crept closer, they were aware of their presence and were sizing up their new meal. 

 

“I know, just give me a second!” Druxri frantically started chopping at the claw, desperately trying to get it to remove itself from the body. She was almost there but the Gundarks were getting ever closer.

 

“Yes! Go, now! Run!” Druxri pulled the claw and began sprinting away towards the shuttle station but Aldux was frozen in fear. She looked back to see him stood there shaking as the herd crept towards him. She could feel his fear through the force and ran back towards him.

 

“You better run with me now because I’m not dragging a mangled corpse back to the Academy.” Aldux nodded and Druxri grabbed his hand with her free hand and began running towards the shuttle station but the Gundarks followed, sprinting after them not wanting to lose their dinner. Druxri’s throat and lungs were burning from how fast she was sprinting and having to drag Aldux back too. He was smaller than her and thus couldn’t run as fast due to his smaller legs. 

 

The shuttle station came into view and the Imperial troopers readied their guns. 

 

“Dru, they’re gonna shoot us!” Aldux became panicked and started to slow his running. 

 

“No, they’re going to shoot the Gundarks, just trust me!” She kept running towards the station and pulled on Aldux’s arm to get him to run faster. The troopers raised their guns and began firing towards Druxri and Aldux but the blaster fire went past them and towards the Gundarks. Druxri turned her head and stopped running, seeing the bodies of the Gundarks littering the floor outside of the station. She bent over resting her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath while Aldux did the same, but their rest was interrupted when one of the troopers came over to them.

 

“What in the hell were you kids thinking going out into that forest?!” He sounded very irritated at the pair. 

 

“Sith business, we were sent by our master to collect a Gundarks claw.” Druxri replied still a little out of breath.

 

“Sounds like your master doesn’t like you two very much.” The trooper began walking away from them to return to his post. 

 

“Tell me something I don’t know.’ Druxri mumbled to herself. ‘Come on, let’s head back.”

  
  


The shuttle ride didn’t take very long to bring them back but they had received weird looks due to two teenagers looking exhausted and one of them carrying a Gundarks claw. When they entered the Academy, Aldux wanted to head straight back to his room but they had to give the claw to their master. But Druxri wasn't in the mood to be polite to him not after spending her afternoon risking her life just to prove her master wrong. As they walked deeper into the Academy, acolytes in their class recognized them and saw the mud that littered their training clothes from hiding in the grass. Then they saw the claw that Druxri was carrying. She just wanted to head to masters office, give him the claw and leave but Donnik was approaching and Druxri knew this wouldn’t go easy. 

 

“So you actually did it? And here I thought you wouldn’t return.” Druxri scowled at him and walked slowly towards him. He had a nasty smirk on his face, how Druxri just wanted to kill-

 

“Yeah we came back so if you’ll excuse us, we need to go give the claw to the master.” Aldux piped up pulling Druxri out of her thoughts, and she was grateful he did otherwise she might’ve done something she would’ve been made to regret later. Aldux tried to push past Donnik but he pushed Aldux back. Even though Druxri found Aldux relatively annoying and clingy, this didn’t sit well with her. 

 

“Back off, Donnik. Or the Gundark claw won’t be the only hand I’ll be taking to the master.” Druxri was directly in front of Donnik now, so close she could feel his breath on her face. He didn’t take that threat well, his face scrunched up into a mean scowl as he pushed against Druxri. 

 

“Do it, Red-Head. I won’t be the one getting kicked out of the Academy or killed.” He smiled at her and Druxri saw red. She turned to Aldux to hand him the claw and he grabbed it reluctantly. Aldux made eye contact with Druxri and all his eyes were saying was ‘please don’t do this’ but Druxri was going to. She reached over with her hand and grabbed Donnik’s wrist, twisting sharply causing him to let out quite a girlish scream. For a guy of his physique, he sure did let out a very feminine scream. She knew she hadn’t broken it or fractured it merely bruised it, but it was his saber hand so that should debilitate him for a little bit. 

 

“You rodent! My father will hear about this!” Donnik shouted in Druxri’s face but all she did was smile at him. Donnik held his wrist with his functioning hand and skulked away towards the acolyte rooms. The crowd of the other acolytes dispersed and headed back towards their rooms while others walked towards the archives. Druxri turned to Aldux to see a smile on his face. Handing the claw back to Druxri, he began to speak. 

 

“You didn’t have to do that, but it was cool.” Aldux smiled and started walking towards the master's office. Druxri didn’t reply. 

 

Walking into the master's office, he was sat behind his desk with a pile of books. He didn’t look up at the pair entering his office. Even as Druxri walked closer to his desk, he still paid no attention. Druxri became annoyed at his ignorance of their presence and decided the best way to get his attention. She stood in front of his desk and slammed the claw down on his desk so hard it created a loud bang. That got his attention. The master looked up at Druxri but she didn’t say a word, merely bowed sarcastically, turned and began to leave the room. 

 

“You know, you shouldn’t have harmed my son.” His son? 

 

“Donnik is your son?” Druxri turned to face the master as he rose from his desk. 

 

“Yes, I am aware of what you did as he came in here sulking not 5 minutes ago. But you returned with the claw so I’ll let it slide. Well done Druxri. You may live through this yet.” The master returned back to his desk. It was obvious he knew that Aldux wouldn’t have been able to take down the Gundark which is probably why he only congratulated Druxri and not Aldux.

 

“Thank you, my master.” Druxri turned and smiled to herself, leaving the room with Aldux. Once they were outside the office, Druxri turned to him. 

 

“You should head to the archives and do the original task the master asked of everyone. I’m heading back to my room. See you later, worm.” Aldux waved at her and headed to the archives. She wanted to call him by his actual name but didn’t want to risk being caught out for talking too much while they were out. Druxri turned the opposite way and headed back to her room. As she grew closer to her room, something felt off. An unknown presence had been here, it rippled through the force like a wave of heat crawling up her back. She opened the door to her room but nobody was in there. But something still wasn’t right so she decided to meditate on it.

 

She moved to the center of her room and sat on the floor with her legs crossed and eyes closed. She wasn’t angry enough to channel her full meditation, but surely some guidance from the force would help her figure out what was out of place. She searched for almost 20 minutes when something clicked, her eyes opened and her gaze was drawn to her bed. She got up and headed over to the poor excuse of a bed and lifted the mattress to find a ripped out page of paper underneath. Taking it in her hand she turned it over to see a message. 

 

_ “I can get you what you need to know.  _

_ Keep this between us.  _

_ Agreed?  _

_ -A friend _

 

_ P.S leave any reply under your mattress.” _

 

A friend? And what information were they talking about? Druxri looked around her room but realized she didn’t have any paper to write a response or even a pen. How was she supposed to write a response? Until it dawned on her, it wouldn’t be a nice message to see but she didn’t see any alternative. She bit the end of her finger harshly and blood started to form on her fingertip. She pressed her finger to the page and wrote ‘Agreed’ in her blood, she hid the page back under her mattress and set it back down. Whoever this friend was had access to her room, so they must be someone working in the Academy. 

 

She lied down on her bed and closed her eyes, ready for sleep to take her. She didn’t know who this friend was, but it was going to be fun finding out.


	3. This Is Just The Beginning.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Druxri meets a new friend that Aldux is unsure of.

It had been a few weeks since Druxri received her first note from the stranger, but after the stranger received that first reply from her written in her own blood, they left a notebook and pen behind making it a lot easier for her to respond. And a lot less messy. She was grateful for this, but it also made her curious as to who was sending her these messages. The first question that popped into her head was ‘how did they get these supplies?’ and the more she thought on it, it made sense that the stranger had to be someone who works here and not an acolyte. No acolytes were permitted to have possessions within their chambers so it didn’t make sense for it to be an acolyte communicating with her. 

 

During her training sessions, nobody had been acting strange towards her or even giving her a second glance confirming her theory of it not being an acolyte. In the past few weeks, the group of acolytes had been whittled down from 18 to just 7. A lot of acolytes had been failing their trials, to the master’s distaste, even just for simple things. A few had been cut down for simply speaking to the master the wrong way whereas one girl was slaughtered in front of the entire class because she dropped an ancient Holocron, smashing it to pieces. Druxri didn’t feel sorry for her, she shouldn’t have been so careless. As the group got smaller, she tried to figure out everyone’s motives and future plans, she understood that Donnik was the biggest target for her. He wanted her out and the feeling was mutual.

 

She had no classes today and she was glad as the stranger had requested to meet her in the Archives. She was nervous, anticipating finally meeting the person that had been so openly willing to help her find her parents murderers, at least that’s what she assumed from helping her ‘get the information she wanted’. She clambered out of her bed, nearly falling to the floor and began to collect her clothing. She really needed new training gear, but due to restrictions on supplies, she would have to wait. They kept accepting more and more acolytes as they wanted to have a bigger army than the Republic for when the time came, she agreed with their methods, but damn did she want new clothes. She tied her hair up in a sleek high ponytail, wishing for there to be no bumps within her crimson locks. She wouldn’t be able to check as they weren’t even permitted mirrors in their chambers in case they smashed the glass and used it as a weapon. Finally tying her boots, she headed out of her room and towards the Archives. 

 

She was almost there when she heard that familiar timid voice.

 

“Hey.” She turned to see Aldux standing there looking as though he was trying to protect his body. She wanted to talk to him but talking was restricted, they both knew this. She would talk to him through the force and into his mind but he hadn’t even learned how to do that yet. He was further behind the rest of the group and Druxri could sense his downfall. It grew like a monster within her, absorbing all of the fear of the future and flooding her veins. 

 

“You know we’re not supposed to talk to each other.” She replied in a hushed whisper, looking around to see if anyone would see them talking before properly facing the small boy. She wondered whether he was younger than her or just really small. She decided on the latter. 

 

“I know but I just wanted to talk to you. You seemed to be in a good mood. Can I walk with you to the Archives?” His timid personality seemed to crack a little bit, moving his arms to his sides instead of sheltering his body. This warmed Druxri so she agreed to let him walk with her. She considered him a friend, not a very close friend as she feared the attachment would cause something bad to happen. Due to losing her family, she felt that anyone she would grow attached to, would be pulled from her, lost forever. But she had the feeling like she needed to protect him, an almost motherly nature crawling out of her, screaming at her to make sure he’s okay. 

 

She didn’t know what the stranger looked like to know whether they were there or not, but she trusted herself and believed the force would guide her. When they approached the entrance for the Archives, Aldux said goodbye, turned around and headed in the same direction they just walked in. He clearly didn’t need to go to the Archives but Druxri still appreciated the company all the same. Looking ahead she didn’t see anyone she didn’t recognize and decided to head to the section on past Sith Lord’s. Maybe the stranger would know her and approach her. 

 

She had been there for almost an hour with still no show of the stranger but continued reading regardless. 

 

***

 

On his way back to his chambers, Aldux thought about the walk he had with Druxri, he liked her  _ a lot _ and even that was an understatement. He knew he wasn’t allowed to talk to her, but he always found himself drawn towards her, his mind feeling the need to surround himself with her and waste every second hearing her voice. Ever since they hunted the Gundark together a few weeks ago, he felt a deep attachment to her. She had saved him from not only the Gundark’s but being killed by the Master too, he was grateful. He was infatuated. He got so lost in thoughts he didn’t realize who was walking towards him until it was too late. He crashed into the large body in front of him, letting out a small squeal from the shock of being pulled from his thoughts so abruptly.

 

“Where are you going, worm?” It was Donnik. Aldux didn’t want to reply and he was too far away from Druxri to ask for help. He had a bad feeling and it only grew worse the longer he looked at Donnik. Donnik noticed Aldux looking around and deduced it to Aldux looking for Druxri. He smirked.

 

“Um- to my r-room.” Aldux put his head down, why was he so nervous? He wanted to be a Sith but there was something in him always pulling him away from the darkness. He didn’t want to hurt people or anything for that matter. Attacking the Gundark’s with Druxri made his heart break, they were a family. Yes, the Gundark’s were violent but they attacked them first, they were only defending themselves.

 

Aldux tried to push past Donnik but to no avail. The large man raised his arm and pushed Aldux back until his spine was flush with the wall. 

 

“I don’t think so. We’re gonna have a little talk.” Aldux was terrified. This was his end, he was sure of it.

 

***

 

“Druxri?” She turned to see a tall olive-skinned man slightly older than her leaning towards her. He had short black hair and the most beautiful brown eyes. He was dressed as a janitor, which would explain how he got the supplies for her to write back to him. His body was broad but not so much that he was intimidating or overpowering. He was perfect. Druxri snapped out of her thoughts once she realized she had been staring at the man.

 

“Yeah- sorry, hello.” She smiled at him. She wasn’t expecting someone like him to show up. If she was perfectly honest with herself, she wasn’t expecting to live through this meeting, fearing someone like Donnik would show up instead and finally finish her off. But she was happy to see a new face. A very handsome one at that. 

 

“Hey, so it’s nice to finally meet in person, I didn’t know whether you would respond to my note considering you’re not allowed to talk an’ all.” His accent wasn’t of Dromund Kaas and it showed the longer he spoke. 

 

“Where are you from? Your accent- I can’t place it?” Druxri looked at him completely ignoring his previous sentence. The man began to look nervous and shifted in his seat before returning to his smiling face in an attempt to cover it up, but Druxri didn’t notice. 

 

“I’m from Naboo. And yeah, my name’s also Malakai. I forgot to mention that.” He laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his neck with his hand while smiling. Druxri couldn’t take her eyes away from his, she had completely drifted off again until she heard ‘Naboo’.

 

“Naboo?! I love Naboo. Not that I’ve been there of course. But from what I’ve read and seen pictures of it looks absolutely beautiful. I wish I could go one day.” Druxri gazed off into the distance towards the planet archives and Malakai followed her gaze. 

 

“Well, I have an idea. Since you don’t have any training for the day, why don’t we do some research on Naboo and get to know each other?” He smiled sweetly at her, reaching for her hand and gently grazing her knuckles with his thumb. Druxri looked at her hand, seeing Malakai gently brush over her knuckles and blushed deeply. She didn’t know why her heart jumped in her chest, she’d only just met him. But something about him made her feel safe and covered up the feeling of uncertainty in the pit of her stomach. She nodded at him, agreed to his plan and got up from the table. She didn’t question how he knew she didn’t have any lessons that day, maybe she mentioned it and didn't remember. But she was happy, happier than she had ever been in a long time.

 

***

 

A few punches and kicks to the chest later and Aldux was on the ground, trying desperately to get them to stop, begging them to stop hitting him and to just let him go. His ribs were sore, his intestines felt as though they were going to fall out of his skin, blood pounding within his brain from being kicked. He thought they stopped until he felt a hand on the back of his head which began to pull on his hair. It was Donnik’s hand and he was forcing Aldux to look up at him.

 

“You better watch your back around here, worm. You’re not going to make it through this Academy if I have anything to say about it. And neither will your precious little red-haired friend. Tell anyone about this and we’ll slit her throat in her sleep.” Aldux reluctantly agreed not to tell anyone while hot tears streamed down his face. He just wanted to curl up in a ball and die, for the void of the force to swallow him whole and erase his existence from the universe. He wanted to warn Druxri but he couldn't even do that. Donnik kicked his head one more time and laughed as he and his group walked away, leaving Aldux on the floor crying. 

 

He knew he wasn’t supposed to be here, kriff, he didn’t even  _ want  _ to be here. He was taken from his parents while he was still so young after they found out he was force-sensitive. He was sent for  _ reconditioning _ after the masters found out his family supported the Republic, wanting him to grow into a strong Sith and help eradicate all the Jedi. Continuing Darth Vader’s work, as they had put it. But he didn’t want that, killing and harming people wasn’t in his nature. He had grown up to love not to hate, he wasn’t meant for this. 

 

He tried to stop his crying and gather himself up from the floor, he was sure he’d have a black eye after all that and half his body _ at least _ be covered in bruises. He didn’t want to return to his room just yet, he wanted to protect his friend and set out to the Archives, to find Druxri.

 

***

 

“So you see, she was only 14 when she was the Queen of Naboo. She helped created a treaty between the Gungans and then became a Senator after her term was finished.” Malakai explained as Druxri gazed upon the photos of the Senator. 

 

“She’s beautiful. What happened to her?” Druxri looked away from the photos, instead, facing Malakai with sadness in her eyes. Every photo she looked upon of the Senator, she appeared so sad and lost. The only happy photo she could find of her was at the celebration of the treaty on Naboo.

 

“You never learned about her?” Malakai looked confused but moved closer to Druxri letting his hand slowly graze across hers again. Her breath hitched but she didn’t move away, not yet. 

 

“No, we’ve only ever been taught about the Dark Side, Master deemed it useless to learn about the Republic.” She lied. She did know about Padmé and the Republic. She’d always idolized the grace and poise Padmé carried herself with, but she just wanted to hear Malakai talk more, he was clearly passionate about the Republic. She returned her gaze back to the photos of the Senator as a blush flooded her cheeks. 

 

“Well, obviously you know about Darth Vader.’ Druxri nodded. ‘She was his wife. They married on Naboo shortly after the Clone Wars began. But because he was a Jedi, their marriage had to be kept secret and that’s what ultimately destroyed them. She was pregnant with twins at the time of Anakin Skywalker becoming Darth Vader, he choked her on Mustafar and she died of heartbreak. That’s the official reason anyway but I believe it to be more than that. It’s sad, she never got the chance to be a mother.” Malakai looked away from Druxri with sadness in his eyes. Druxri felt the need to comfort him but didn’t want to overstep the line. Instead, she leaned forward and pressed her hands on top of his and squeezed.

 

“Let’s look at something else, huh?” Druxri said to him softly as she smiled. Malakai looked up at her, smiled back and nodded. 

 

Aldux finally made it back to the entrance of the Archives and looked for Druxri, it wouldn’t be hard considering how bright her hair was. Every step along the way to the Archives made him wince in pain. It wasn’t a surprise Donnik had attacked him. He kept looking around until he spotted her. With a man? Aldux kept watching as he saw her lean in and place her hands on top of his, he could see her lips moving but couldn’t hear what she was saying. Then he saw the man look back up at her and smile too before they both turned back to the monitor. Why was Druxri being so affectionate towards him and a janitor of all people? He felt crushed, knowing officially that he never had a chance with her. He always held out hope that maybe one day she would suddenly reciprocate his feelings. But now that hope crumbled to dust and the wind blew it away. 

 

He turned and began to head back to his quarters. He may only be a janitor but something didn’t feel right with him. He wanted to investigate. If nothing was wrong with him then he would let Druxri carry on with what she was doing, but if something was wrong, then he had to warn her. 

 

He kept moving towards the acolyte chambers until he found the supply closet. Even though there were a few other janitors around the Academy, the force pulled him to this specific one, almost whispering and begging for him to look. Thankfully the door was unlocked and so he crept inside, used the force to lock the door behind him and began his search. 

 

***

 

It began to get dark outside and Druxri noticed the tall windows of the Archives letting in less and less light the more time passed. She didn’t want to leave Malakai, but she also didn’t want to be explaining to her Master why she was outside of her room after curfew.

 

“It’s getting late and I really should be heading back to my chambers before the Master finishes me off.” Malakai nodded knowing how harsh the Masters can be within the Academy and helped Druxri stand before the pair turned towards the door and left together. They talked the entire way back to the acolyte chambers, time going all too fast for them to have another long conversation. Druxri stood outside of her chambers as Malakai walked closer to her, raised her hand and kissed her knuckles. 

 

“Until next time.” He took a miniature bow towards Druxri and she laughed copying him in a comedic manner before he turned down the hall towards his supply closet to fetch cleaning supplies for the night. Druxri decided against going inside her chamber just yet and headed in the opposite direction towards Aldux’s chambers. She had fear growing in the pit of her stomach and needed to check on him. Something wasn’t right. 

 

As Aldux searched the closet, he could hear footsteps growing closer to him. He closed his eyes and reached out with the force to find it to be the janitor that was with Druxri. He had to get out of here and fast, looking around the room for an escape, he couldn’t see a way out until he looked up and saw a panel leading to the air ducts. Perfect. He climbed up the shelves towards the panel and used the force to undo all of the screws, catching them in his hand as not to leave any evidence. He dragged himself into the air duct and placed the panel back into its place, hoping he made it in time. 

 

The door to the closet began to rattle as Malakai tried to enter, not knowing the door was locked when suddenly the door was ripped open. He was stronger than he looked and for the second time in one day, Aldux was scared. He held his breath, begging for the force not to give him away. He was only trying to help. 

 

Druxri continued down the hall until she found Aldux’s chambers. Knocking on the door, she heard no reply and continued knocking before using the force to sense whether he was in his room, but he wasn’t. She decided to wait outside for him. Sitting on the ground with her knees pressed to her chest, she let her head fall back against the wall.

 

Aldux couldn’t believe what he was hearing, how was he getting away with this in the temple? Surely someone would’ve checked incoming and outgoing communications. He had to warn Druxri but if he was too honest, she’ll know he was snooping and never trust her again. He patiently waited for Malakai to leave the closet so he could escape. The force must’ve been on his side because as soon as he wished for it, it happened. Malakai left the closet and Aldux waited until he could no longer hear his footsteps, climbed down from the air duct, stole some paper and a pen and made his way to Druxri’s chambers. 

 

She didn’t know how long she was asleep for but it couldn't have been long, her Master hadn’t found her meaning it wasn’t curfew time just yet. She still couldn’t sense Aldux anywhere near her and decided to give up and find him tomorrow, hopefully, the pit of fear would’ve rid itself by then. 

 

But it didn’t. It only grew as Druxri got closer to her chambers to find her door open. She immediately ran inside and searched for anyone in her room but found no one. Yet again her presence was drawn to her bed. Thinking it was another note from Malakai, she smiled and lifted up the mattress to find a note written in handwriting she had never seen before.

 

“ _ Don’t trust the janitor.” _

 

No signature. No indication of who it could be from. Druxri ran towards her door and looked down each way of the halls but saw no one. Who did this? And what did they want from her? She decided to investigate it tomorrow when she was more awake and settled onto her bed, letting her hair down.

 

The uneasy feeling didn’t go away. 


End file.
